Tesoro to add 292 retail stations

San Antonio-based Tesoro Corp. said Thursday that it will add 292 retail stations to the 1,200 stations it now has in the western United States.

The independent refiner and marketer said it’s buying 51 Albertson’s Fuel Express stations from SUPERVALUE Inc. for $34 million, and will invest $5 million in re-branding the stations.

These stations are located in Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Idaho, Utah and Wyoming. The purchase is expected to close near the end of this year.

Separately, Tesoro will lease from Thrifty Oil Co. 241 retail stations located mostly in southern California for an initial term of 10 years, and will invest $28 million in branding them. Tesoro will take possession of the stations in a phased process. It will bring about 190 stations online in 2012 and the remaining stations in 2014.

“The combined purchase and lease of these stations strengthens our refining and marketing integration by about 12 percent, adds profitable and secure outlets for our refined products and improves our company’s overall portfolio of retail assets,” CEO Greg Goff said in a statement.

Most of the purchased and leased stations will be marketed under Tesoro’s existing brands.

Tesoro is a Fortune 150 company that operates seven refineries in the western United States.